Dust 1947
Dust 1947 is a sci-fi horror tactical miniature board game set during an alternate World War 2 during the mid 20th Century. It originally was mainly a dieselpunk-like wargame with some horror elements (e.g. zombies). Recently the Cthulhu Mythos has been added to the setting. The game is published by Dust Studio which also produces the miniatures. The game was first released in 2016. A rules-light roleplaying version called "Dust Adventures" is published by Modiphious Entertainment. Setting Vrill-Kultur (VK) is a newly discovered energy source, which appears to be of extraterrestrial origin. The first to harness VK were the Germans who gave it it's name. The extraordinary properties of VK have enabled the development of powerful new weapons of war by the great powers. On the modern battlefield, marching alongside the tanks and soldiers are massive walkers, armored fighting vehicles with two or more mechanical legs. VK has also led to the development of directed energy weapons. The deployment of these new weapons has resulted in the breaking of alliances and the formation of new ones. The major powers have formed three blocs; the Axis, the Allies, and the Sino-Soviet Union (SSU). Only a small number of nations have been able to remain neutral during this global conflict. Recently a new player has joined the global conflict. From the ancient land of Mesopotamia, an army of cultists has emerged. Fanatical worshipers of the dark eldritch deities of the Mythos, supported in the battlefield by strange aliens and monstrous creatures. History Prehistoric Earth Approximately 12,000 years ago, Earth was visited by the Annunaki who established colonies. They used humans to mined gold to shield them from the radiation caused by their VK-based technology. The humans may have been genetically modified by the Annunaki and over time they developed their own technological civilization which flourished under the Annunaki. Eventually the intergalactic war between the Annunaki and their enemies the Vrill reached Earth, which had significant amounts of VK and therefore was worth fighting over. It was a centuries long battle over Earth which was remembered by humans in such stories as the war between Hell and Heaven in the Bible and in the Hindu tradition as the war of the gods. Both sides used VK to power their destructive war. Circa 10,000 BC, the Vrill developed a new devastating weapon powered by VK, which launched meteors toward planetary targets. During the conflict an asteroid was launched toward Earth by the Vrill, targeting the Pacific Ocean. Destroying nearly all of the Annunaki and the human civilizations which were being guided and manipulated by them. The night sky was illuminated by the asteroid's impact, which melted the glaciers and caused the rising of the seas, generating unimaginably high tsunamis. Mankind remembers this event in its great flood myths. The war between the two is still raging across the cosmos, a war that is millennia old. World War Two * 1937 - Mainland China is invaded by Japan, setting off the start of World War II. * 1938 - The German military discovers an alien spacecraft in Antarctica which contained one sole survivor within a sarcophagus, in suspended animation. The Blutkreuz Korps (Blood Cross Corps) were founded to conduct research and development with the alien technology. * 1939 - German invades Poland, resulting in France, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand declaring war on the Germans. * 1940 - Blutkreuz Korps scientist release and wake up the alien, who then reveals to them the energy source which the Germans would name Vrill-Kultur (VK). * 1941 - Germany conquers France, and it signs the Tripartite Pact with Japan and Italy. Germany then executes a devastating invasion of the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa. Japan in turn attacks Pearl Harbor, dragging the United States into the war. The Soviets with the aid of winter halt the German advance. * 1942 - Britain stops the Afrika Korps at El Alamein and in the Pacific the United States launches its offensive starting with Gaudalcanal. At Stalingrad, the Germans test their new weapon, armored combat walkers, turning the tide of the battle in their favor. Allied forces execute Operation Torch, landing in Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia. * 1943 - Stalingrad falls to the Germans but the Soviets manage to hold on to territory east of the Volga River, and also capture a German walker along with German engineers, mechanics, and a workshop that are used to develop a Soviet walker. Due to increasing casualties, the Blutkreuz Korps use the Wiederbelebungsserum (reanimation serum) on dead German soldiers. Hardened Soviet veterans break and flee upon facing the zombies which end up inflicting heavy casualties on the Germans too. During a parade in Berlin, a sniper assassinates Adolf Hitler. Due to the chaos in Germany, it's forces retreat on all fronts. SMERSH (Death to Spies) is established in the Soviet Union, which serves as the military's intelligence and counterintelligence service. In North Africa, the remnants of the Axis forces surrender to the Allied forces. In Germany the power struggle concludes with Grand Admiral Karl Donitz as the new leader and the German army under the command of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. Throughout the Reich, Nazis are arrested while the SS troops are either disbanded or integrated into the Wehrmacht. The newly established Axis Bloc appoints Admiral Donitz as its Protector. In the battle of Kursk, it's revealed that the German walkers are vulnerable to the newest Soviet tanks' firepower which also outnumber them, forcing the Germans to reserve their walkers for commando operations and urban combat. The Allies invade Italy and the Germans absorb Italy into the Axis. Secret peace talks begin between the Allies and Axis, and the Axis take advantage of the ceasefire in the West to attack the Soviets. Upon learning of the Allies' betrayal, Stalin breaks all ties with them and vows revenge. Peace talks collapse between the Axis and Allies, likely due to a SMERSH operation. * 1944 - German scientists in Argentina use VK to enhance a bomb which causes an earthquake and kills 10,000, causing the Axis to ban any further research. Japan expands its holdings in China and India via Operations Ichi-Go and U-Go. The Allies launch Operation Overlord in Normandy, France. American forces capture the island of Saipan putting Japan in range of their bombers. Japan turns to Germany for help, and receives walkers, their pilots, and walker designs. The British and French garrisoned island of Madagascar is captured by the Soviet Union, giving them the ability to launch operations to Antarctica. Japan launches a program to develop its own walkers. Most of France is liberated by the Allies who reach Germany's border but are slowly pushed back to France. Japanese forces with the newly developed walkers repel an American invasion of the Philippines. * 1945 - German forces continue to push the Allies back in France. Allied special forces capture Axis VK technology. Japan conquers the island of Celyon with German assistance. In Antarctica the Allies build a base after which they find VK ore. The Allies use a VK enhanced atomic bomb on Celyon, which cracks Earth's crust. Most of Ceylon is claimed by the ocean, after which the use of atomic bombs is banned by the Allies. In terror of the new weapon, Japan unites with the Axis. The Germans push the Allies back to Normandy and the Japanese invade both New Zealand and Australia. China and the Soviet Union join forces, establishing the Sino-Soviet Union (SSU). Tibet and Nepal are invade by the Axis. * 1946 - The SSU executes several successful operations on multiple fronts. Marxist revolutions erupt in South America, orchestrated by SMERSH. Which are supported by SSU scientist and troops looking for VK sources. SSU forces invade both Florida and Alaska on the same night in Operation Red Sun, and retaking Kharkov from the Axis by using massed flame-throwers against the zombies. Their forces land on Iceland's eastern coast to contest the Axis and Allies who were already battling for the island. In the meantime the Axis forced the remnants of the Allied army in France to evacuate back to Great Britain. Axis forces landed in the Gulf of Guinea and Libay to take back North Africa. The Allies are forced to establish a united government and launch a massive attack on Axis' VK supplies from Antarctica, in Operation Highjump. The neutral states form the Neutral Nations Organization (NNO) at Bangkok, Siam. * 1947 - A worldwide offensive is launched by the Axis, resulting in fighting on all fronts. The SSU ends up facing for the first time in years a winter offensive by the Axis. Their lines break at multiple locations on the eastern front. The SSU swiftly responds and encounters a tenacious Axis, which digs in. A spacecraft on non-Vrill origin crash lands in Roswell, New Mexico thereby revealing that the Vrill are not the only aliens. The three blocs are campaigning in Mesopotamia, searching for secrets and tech believed to be located under it's sands. During the fighting, a new faction emerges, the Cult of Cthulhu and its Mythos army. Factions The Vrill In 1936, a Vril crash-landed in Antarctica. The Vrel who called himself Kvasir, told the Nazis that his race had previously visited Earth. It's not known why the Vril came to Earth nor has Kvasir revealed the reason. Apart from the Vril spacecraft it is believed that there is more Vril technology on Earth that has remained undiscovered and all three blocs are in a race to find it. There is also extensive evidence of Vril influence throughout human history (e.g. the Olmecs). It's believed by some groups and individuals that the Vrill are coming back to Earth. Some see them as an existential threat to humanity and others see them as the saviors of Earth. The Rival Blocs * The Axis = Militarily it is the strongest of all the factions. Due to the Germans being the ones to discover the alien and Vrill technology, it's the Axis which have the most advanced military technology in the world. It has state of the art walkers, the most sophisticated jet aircraft, laser weapons, super-ape soldiers, zombie infantry, and jet pack troops, and in the case of Japan also rail guns and phosphorous flame throwers. Their latest weapon, a submersible aircraft carrier which was co-developed by the Japanese and Germans. The Axis bloc is a totalitarian state born from the merger of Germany, Japan, and Italy that is led and dominated by the Germans, though the Japanese have managed to retain most of their independence. Among the blocs it controls less territory than either of its rivals. Their ultimate goal is to unite the world under the Axis and bring about a 1000 year reign of peace. The elite Blutkreuz Korps know that the Vrill will return to Earth again, and they see it as their mission to unite humanity to stand against them under their banner. * The Allies = It consists of a coalition of states which are led by the United States. Which consist of Brazil, the French colonial empire, and the British Commonwealth. Using their unmatched industrial might they have created the world's largest military industrial complex. Despite this their resources are thinly spread across the world, fighting in the cold of Antarctica and Alaska, the mountains of the Andes, the jungles of Borneo and Burma, the deserts of Australia and North Africa, and the swamps of Florida. It's citizens are tired of the endless fighting and it's military is also weary of the constant fighting, but the Allies will continue fighting until they receive the dictatorships' unconditional surrender. Their forces include walkers, jet aircraft, phaser weapons, jump pack troops, and power armor. In addition they have deployed a small number of super-soldiers who are stronger and faster. * The SSU = Whose population tirelessly work to manufacture new weapons and build new factories, producing combat technology that is on the cutting edge. Fallen veteran soldiers are grafted with the new tech, allowing them to return to the front lines. The SSU has endured more punishment than any other faction, neither of the other two have lost so much of their resources and homeland, or so many of its people. Despite the aforementioned, the SSU is getting stronger as its side makes major territorial gains both via its forces and communist revolutions it backs. It's forces include walkers, heavily armed helicopter gunships, Tesla lighting guns, and power armor. It also possesses the most fearsome and effective "normal" (as in not enhanced) force of special operations troops, the Spetsnaz. In addition the SSU have successfully created one super-soldier whose also the most powerful human on Earth, with the mental ability to harness and control energy sources, in addition to rendering his body immune to physical harm. Organizations * Sacred Dawn = Which is a religious-political organization of White Russians, supporters of the Tsars. It has taken advantage of the war to recruit and commit acts of terrorism against the SSU. They are led by the White Countess and it's members operate in cells within major Russian cities. * Order of Baphomet = Surviving remnants of the Templars. Who defended the Cathars of southern France during the Albigensian Crusade and were believed destroyed by the French king. Presently active within France, and have stayed hidden for over 6 centuries. They are neutral in the war and worship the Vrill, desiring their return to Earth. * Freemasons = Played a role in the founding of America. It's a powerful organization which mostly operates from behind the scenes, and many powerful officials and politicians are members, including FDR the former president. They continue to acquire accumulate more power. * Majestic 12 = Which is led by an increasingly erratic Howard Hughes, is attempting to discover and reverse engineer Vrill technology before the Allies. The organization is working with the Allies, but it's agenda is no longer about helping America but something greater. It acts as a state within a state, conducts espionage on the Allies, operates as a business competitor of the Allies, and finances/produces anti-Allied propaganda. * Blutkreuz = Who are believed responsible for Hitler's assassination and the coup. They conduct all the R&D when it comes to VK. The organization's agenda is unknown, but it is behind the Germany's goal of world conquest. It is given a lot of autonomy and are feared, though not as much as the SS previously was. * New Vrill Society = Established to develop the secret psionic powers they believe the Vrill possess. Rumoured to be in contact with the Vrill. * Vormund = An intelligence agency which rooted out and punished key Nazis. Popular with the German public and rivals the Blutkreuz in power. They don't trust each other, and will likely go to war against the other once the Axis achieve victory. * Ahnenerbe = Which is dedicated to the culture and history of the "Aryan" race. It absorbed the remnants of the death squads, Waffen SS, and other elements loyal to the Nazis. Some were prepared for the coup and purge, and escaped to Argentina with resources and technology. It has a worldwide network of agents, has members deep within Germany's ranks (including at the highest levels), and is attempting to resurrect Hitler. * SMERSH = An incredibly effective intelligence agency which has made itself proof against infiltration and is in charge of state security. A colossal bureaucratic and heavy-handed machine. It has orchestrated Marxist revolutions across South America, unlocked for the SSU the secrets of Vrill tech, conducts research into Vrill tech and weaponizes it for the SSU, and has broken the codes of the Allies. It's leader is General Rasputin who had been believed assassinated by the Bolsheviks. * Directorate of Psychoenergetics = Which is under SMERSH, it dedicates itself to studying paranormal and psychic phenomena. The organization is similar to Blutkreuz but it's Vrill resources (e.g. tech) are more limited and it uses Vrill tech and VK only for psychic r&d. Mythos * The Mythos Army = It's the newest faction in the world war, which emerged in the sands of Mesopotamia. Led by Lilith, the coven returned to their ancient stronghold in the ruins of Bablyon. Where they unleashed the forces of the Mythos on the world. It is a force of fanatical cultists, including High Priests and the Maidens of the Cult (female-only branch whose fanatacism is surpassed only by the priests). The cult has summoned avatars of both Cthulhu and Nyarlathotep, and its forces are supported by various Mythos creatures and races. Which include the Star Spawn, the Dark Young, and the Mi-go (who possess strange technology, including copper weapons that fire devastating energy beams). Gallery Gallery of the World World_Map_(Dust_Studio).jpg|World Map Gallery of the Mythos Avatar_of_Nyarlathotep_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Avatar of Nyarlathotep Avatar_of_Cthulhu_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Avatar of Cthulhu Xothian_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Star Spawn Dark_Young_of_Shub-Niggurath_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Dark Young of Shub-Niggurath Mi-go_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Mi-go (with weapon) Mi-go_2_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Mi-go Gallery of Misc Species Vrill_Grays_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Vrill Gray (alien) Zombies_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Zombies Super-Ape_Soldier.jpg|Super-Ape Soldier Gallery of Characters Experiment_X33_(Dust_Studio).jpg|Experiment X33 Dust_Adventures_2_(Modiphius_Entertainment).jpg|SSU Super-Soldier Gallery of Misc Scenes Axis_Submerisble_Aircraft_Carrier_(Modiphius_Entertainment).jpg|Axis Submersible Aircraft Carrier Dust_Studio_4.jpg Dust_Studio_5.jpg Dust_Studio_2.jpg Dust_Adventures_1_(Modiphius_Entertainment).jpg Dust_1947_(Twistory_Studios).jpg Paolo_Parente's_Dust_(Westfield_Comics).jpg Dust_Studio_3.jpg Category:Board Games Category:Role-Playing Games Category:Cthulhu Mythos role-playing games